The Reverse Will
by Zorana
Summary: She saw a side she didn't know existed.She loved him and betrayed everyone she loved because of it. HGLM. Eventual HGSS.
1. Default Chapter

Hermione wrapped her arms tighter around herself as she walked up to the open window. Smiling, she was almost able to hear the long forgotten sounds of the halls of Hogwarts. She closed her eyes remembering her first year, when her friendship with Harry and Ron began.

Her arms left her body as she reached up to touch her lips replaying her betrayal in her mind. She felt the tears making their way unto her face. Quickly she wiped them away with her sleeve. She would not allow herself to cry for what was gone. She would not give into the pain of the long forgotten. She would not let herself remember how she had let it all slip too quickly, and how it had fallen, like fine sand through open fingers.

A sudden bang at the window snapped her out of her reverie. She jumped back and let out a small yelp.

"Hermione, "she heard her father call to her, "are you alright?"

She managed a strangled 'fine' to her father before turning back to the window.

"Ok." She heard the reluctance in his voice. "I have to go out for a bit. If you need me I have my phone."

"Alright daddy."

Footsteps, followed by the slam of the door ended their conversation.

Moving over to the window she carefully opened the window to look out. Instead the twittering creature that has cause the disturbance let itself in.

'Pig.' She smiled. It faded quickly. No, Ron hadn't contacted her in years.

The owl kept zooming over her head wanting nothing more than to be freed of the object on it's leg. Hermione hushed it and pulled the folded piece of parchment from the owl's leg.

The same lettering that had greeted her every year for 7 years, _'Miss Hermione Granger.' _

Shaking she turned it over, fingering the seal, dreading what would she had waited for so long.

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. _

6 Years earlier

Harry stepped out of the change rooms to be greeted with the Griffindor House cheering his name. Soon afterward he felt arm's around his neck, and a kiss on his cheek.

"You were great out there Harry." He looked into Hermione's grinning face, and began to grin himself. How could he not; the atmosphere itself was infectious.

"Can you believe that we won again? This is so great. If we win one more game we take the cup."

Hermione smiled. "You know we'll win. We've got you on our side."

Harry looked to the side, not even Snape's deep penetrating stare, and curled lip in his direction could ruin his mood. He deliberately hugged Hermione closer. Snape's lip twisted into an even more disgusted grimace. Harry knew how much he hated Hermione. How much he hated '_Mudbloods_'. Harry could care less knowing that he had someone as great as Hermione on his side. And that was enough.

Harry turned his gaze over to Ron who looked particularly dishevelled, taking a nasty beating from a bludger that a Slytherin had sent his way. What the Slytherin didn't expect was the penalty Ron would receive on behalf of the deliberate behaviour. Harry smiled remembering the look on Draco's face.

When Ron had joined his side, Harry was still holding Hermione, and the trio made their way up to the Griffindor Common Room.

Hermione felt more alive that ever. The little victory that Griffindor had just ensued was more than enough to get Hermione's hopes up. This was their last year at Hogwarts, and winning the Quidditch cup would guarantee the Grinffindor house a piece of Hogwarts history.

A history that she would become part of.

She realized that Harry was still clutching her and only let her go when they had reached the Common Room and made his way over to the other Quidditch players.

She felt a butterbeer being pushed into her hands, and looked up to see the grinning faces of Fred and George Weasley. Since they had dropped out the prior year, she had only seen them at summer break.

"How ya doing Hermione?"

Somewhere in the corner she head a bird like squeal. She looked over. An unfortunate first year had just innocently indulged in one of Fred and George's canary creams. She looked away shaking her head.

Looking down at her butterbeer then catching the twins' eyes she gave them a puzzled look ,aware of the pranks Fred and George often played.

They caught on and giggled. "No Hermione it's the pastries we hexed. You know quite well that we would _never_ do that to you." George clarified the matter, but Hermione noticed that his voice held something more in the word 'never'.

Before she had the chance to say anything, Ron came by and grabbed her arm, literally dragging her to the other side of the room. He clinked his butterbeer to hers.

"Cheers Hermione."

"Cheers Ron."

"This is great don't you reckon? If we win the next game we take the championship and the cup. We'll go down in history." His voice became slightly quieter at those words. Even though he hadn't said it, they had both felt it. This was nearly the last year they would be able to see each other. Next year would be spent trying to figure out where they would be in life. "I'll miss you tons." He hugged her.

She returned his hug. "Calm yourself Ron. Hogwarts isn't over yet." With that she let him go. "Ron?"

"Yeah?"

"You smell a bit, do you reckon you could hit the shower?"

He looked at her with exasperation, but eventually broke out into a fit of laughter. "Right I'll do just that. And then I think I'm going to hit the sack. Been quite a day." He put down his butterbeer and made his way to the stairs. "Night Hermione."

"Night Ron."

A few moments later she found herself saying goodnight to everyone and making her way up the stairs. Before she got to her room though Harry caught up to her. "Don't I get a _g'night _Hermione?"

She smiled. "Of course Harry. Buenos noches." She turned to make her way into her room. "You should go Harry. This is the girls' dormitory. Wouldn't want you to get into trouble like the last time."

He blushed. "Right," he turned to leave, "hey I forgot to compliment your hair. I like what you've done with it."

She absently ran her fingers through it. Tired of the bushy mop that she had possessed though the last 5 years, she had opted to straighten it. A look that she had much coveted through the years.

"Thanks Harry." She grinned watching him walk away. She made her way to her dormitory and climbed into bed after changing into her pyjamas. She closed her eyes and sleep overtook her quickly.

Present day.

That was all 6 years ago. Why was she thinking about it now? Could it have been the envelope? The long expected news. She missed Harry and Ron with every fibre of her being. Unfortunately they no longer felt the same way.

Drying away the tears again, she opened the envelope. Headmaster Dumbledore's small handwriting greeted her.

_Dear Hermione Granger, _

_I hope that you are feeling much better than when we parted our ways. It would be nice to see you again Ms. Granger. Therefore I would like to extend to you and invitation to visit the Hogwarts ground this coming summer break. I have important things to discuss and would very much appreciate your presence in the matter. Please R.S.V.P. me with the owl I have sent you. He may be small, but I assure you he is more than capable of getting the job done. _

_Albus Dumbledore. _

She looked down at the letter with hesitation. What could he possibly want to discuss with her? All she wanted to do was get away from _that_ part of her life, but everywhere she turned it seemed to be calling out to her. The halls of Hogwarts, her joy and her misery.

Why did he want to see her now though? Was there a reason? She had been away from the wizarding world for so long that she didn't know what was happening. After that…incident, Hermione had vowed that she would never have anything to do with that world again.

Instead she had returned to the muggle world and had taken a job as a resident doctor, lying about where she had been educated, Dumbledore had helped her out, contacting a muggle institute and having them put her name into their records. Currently she was working toward her history degree so that she could teach on her own.

Her parents had been worried about her choice career because they knew how much she had valued her Hogwarts education. Never-the-less they had not confronted her about it. Instead they allowed her to live out her meagre existence in the home she had grown up in before her calling to Hogwarts.

They had seen the change in her. It was evident to them no matter how she tried to hide it. Her last year had changed her. She had such high hopes in returning to Hogwarts to become a teacher. What had happened to her that would lead her to change her life's dream? They wished that one day she would open up, tell her what had made her this empty shell, barely living, devoid of all emotion.

But why did she feel the need to answer Dumbledore's letter? To run to Hogwarts, into the waiting halls? Into _his_ waiting arms.

Without thinking she picked up a pen and scribbled on the back of the parchment.

_Dear Professor Dumbledore, _

_I accept your invitation and look forward to seeing you. Yes I am doing much better than when we parted. I hope you are well. See you soon._

_Hermione Granger._

With that she tied the small letter back onto the leg of the jittery owl and sent it off. Although she looked forward to a reunion with the teachers she had loved, the beginnings of a knot formed in her stomach. How would they have treated her if they had known?

Past

They did win the Quidditch cup that year. It had been so exciting watching Harry narrowly miss a bludger while he swooped down to grab the golden snitch that had won them the tournament and the house cup.

Hermoine remember cheering until her throat went raw.

It was also the one year that Voldemort stood idle. Hermione often contemplated this, a knot growing in her stomach that he had something even bigger planned when he did rise. Naturally she would have told Harry, but after seeing the look on his face after the match she didn't have the heart. So she went home for the summer promising to write Ron, and, Harry everyday.

The first two weeks of her summer was spent with her parents who were preparing to attend a dentist convention in America. Her parents needed to receive more training in order to continue on with their practise. As much as she would miss them she was relieved that she would be able to breath for a month with them gone.

The first week of her summer was routine, and she began to miss the excitement she often received in the company of Harry and Ron. She began to work tediously with her chores, opting to do them slow rather than have nothing to do in the end. In short her summer was quite boring.

On the morning of the first Friday of her holidays, Hermione had just returned inside from hanging her clothing.

A sharp rap at her door made her jump. Who could be visiting now? Surely not Harry or Ron, they would've Owled her first. She cautiously walked to the door and looked through the peep hole. Nothing. Finally relenting her fear she pulled open the door.

She looked around but it was not until she looked down that her fears were verified. On her doorstep lay the beaten and bloodied figure of none other than Lucius Malfoy.


	2. Awakening

She remembered looking down at the figure on the floor. Remembered the repulsion she felt toward _it. _But what she didn't remember was allowing _it _into the house.

Normally emotions would never get in the way of helping an enemy in distress. It was just that no one deserved to look the way he did on her doorstep. Mangled and bloody.

Even today she could see him every time she closed her eyes.

At least that was what she told herself. She often wondered what would have happened if she had not let him into her house, into her life. (Playing the what - if game was never fun.)

He was bleeding all over, and to her it looked like he would not make it through the night. She tended to his wounds as best she could without the use of magic.

She supposed that she should have sent Dumbledore word that a notorious death eater had landed on her doorstep, but she was devoid of all rationality at that moment.

Her only task was ensuring that Malfoy lived, no matter how vile he was.

She bathed and bandaged his unconscious figure after half lifting, half dragging his limp body to a spare bed. She dressed his wounds only to discover more blood. Healing him was beyond her skill.

She stayed in his room that night. Listened to his feverish moaning in the dark hours of the night. Towelled his brow when he began to sweat, felt the heat of his body, warm with fever. The initial surprise came when she found he was still alive in the morning.

The next nights were spent by his side looking for some form of movement and dribbling a mixture of water and honey down his throat in hopes of keeping some form of strength with his body. By the second night he stopped muttering, and became rigid. The only sign that he was still alive came from the occasional rise and fall of his chest. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity his breathing became regular.

That was when Hermione allowed herself to relax. As much as she hated the man in front of her, she felt that not even he should be subjected to the torment

It continued for the next three days. On the third night it dawned on her how peaceful he looked. With his blond hair scattered around his face, and the look of contemplation on his face made Hermione truly believe that there may have been something more to him. The feeling only lasted until he finally woke up on the fourth morning.

_Lucius had been falling. The man in the silver mask at the top of the building had told him that falling wasn't that bad...so he'd jumped. At first the fall had been leisurely, he felt that he could fall forever. When he began to fall faster, he heard the laughter. _

_The man in the silver mask was standing above him and laughing. He cursed and tugged at his robes only to discover that his wand had been taken. _

_Now there were more voices laughing, all around him. He looked up to see all the masked faces taking pleasure in his pain. _

_So he kept falling, there was nothing else he could do. But now he could see how close the ground really was. A pretty little street with pretty little house loomed before him. He thought is would be nice to stop falling and see what was in those houses. _

_The laughter grew louder. His brothers, they were all laughing at him. He wanted to curse them all. Make them fall. Then the muttering began. Quiet at first, almost unheard amidst the laughter. _

_Only one voice was clear. _

_Lucius looked up at the masks. In the middle only one was different. A pair of red eyes glared down at him. _

"_You disappoint me my dear Lucius. You **never** betray another one of your brothers." _

_A stream of green light shot from the clouds and caught Lucius in the chest. That was when he reached the ground…. _

The light was blinding. And it kept changing colours.

"Go away." He swatted his hand at is without much luck. It just kept getting brighter.

His eyes opened suddenly, blinking owlishly trying to take in it's surroundings.

Hermione stood in the corner unsure of what would he would do when he finally saw her.

He began to look around the room, his steel eyes confused as they began to survey their environment. When he finally saw her figure, for a moment his steel eyes betrayed him. The look was almost…fearful? She realized that she couldn't tell.

She moved a little farther from the corner slowly walking toward the edge of the bed. She stopped when he cleared his throat and groaned.

Recognition shone in his cold eyes like morning dew. "What the hell are you doing here _Mudblood_?" His voice was rough the sound grating like sandpaper.

Any warmth that Hermione had felt toward him vanished. "No Lucius," she spat with every ounce of disdain she felt at the moment, "the question is what are you doing here?" She hadn't meant to sound so cold, but knowing that this man fathered none other than Draco Malfoy made her blood run cold.

"How should I know that, stupid girl? What I want to know it why I am currently not in the comfort of my own home?"

"I should like to know the answer to that myself. You turned up here about 7 days ago. You were a bloody mess. Literally."

His eyes closed gently as he struggle to remember. Bits and pieces of the events formed in his mind but there was nothing concrete. He frowned. 'Something isn't right…"

"Even if I were as you put it _'a bloody mess' _I assure you Miss Granger the last place on earth that I would _willingly_ step foot into is this filthy shack you call a home." Even weak and bleeding the man could still come up with insults to keep even the strongest at bay.

She clenched her teeth. This slimy git was treading on thin ground if he didn't die of his wounds, she'd kill him herself. "Well I believe that you have found yourself in my home. Now please kindly try to remember why." She vowed to remain civil to him. No matter how he pushed her.

"I think I would rather not. I would rather be in the comfort of my own home." He sat up, managing to turn and plant his feet on the floor even thought his entire body screamed with pain.

She smirked. "Go on then, try to leave."

He shot her a stony look wanting nothing more than to hex that bloody smirk off her face. He stood, shooting her a look of triumph before he stumbled. She was by his side in a flash, helping him back into bed.

He rubbed at his forehead, cursing himself and whoever it was that had got him into this predicament. When he looked at, he found Hermione staring at him, a thoughtful look on her face, chewing her bottom lip in something that looked like concern.

"Are you alright Mr. Malfoy?"

"Like you care."

"As much as it may disturb you to think, if I didn't care for the predicament you find yourself in I wouldn't have let you step foot into the house. I could've let you die out there. God knows anyone in their right mind would have." Her last sentence was muttered, barely above a whisper.

The only answer she got were the long deep breaths that came from Lucius's now sleeping figure.

Later that day Hermione sucked up her pride and ventured into the room to take some food to him. It wasn't much in the way of a meal, a turkey sandwich, milk and an apple. Normally she would've loved to take out some time to make a meal but the presence of Lucius Malfoy had reverted her mind to simpler thinking.

When she walked in with the tray he was seated slightly up in bed staring at the wall with a look of contemplation. His chest was bare save for the tattered blood stained bandages. She would have to change them soon.

"Mr. Malfoy?" She could do nothing more than wish that he would just be civil toward her.

She was answered by his grunt. Taking this as an invitation she set down the tray next to him. "I just thought that you might be hungry."

He sneered at her comment internally grateful that she had brought him something to eat.

"Also if your feeling up to it there's a bathroom behind that door." She pointed to the door next to the open closet. "It will give you a chance to wash off the blood." With that she left the room.

Lucius hungrily took to the small meal that she had prepared. Her suggestion that she should have a shower suited his tastes as well. The faster he got better, the faster he could go home.

Waking up in her home, he had to admit had not been altogether a horrible experience. Even deep in his sleep he felt the warmth and love that had been poured into designing the house. His home was, and had always been dark, and he had kept to the tradition. His tastes were expensive, and looking around he saw that this home barely had any taste to it. From what he had seen to the confinements of his bed any way. He snorted at the pieces of mismatched furniture that had hurriedly been placed into the room.

Finally he moved a little to get up. His body and muscles internally screamed out in pain, but being the stubborn man he was he made his way over to the shower. He couldn't take the chance to apparate until his wounds were fully healed. Which meant he had to cosy up to the muggle born for a while.

'No matter,' he chuckled, 'I can be quite charming if the occasion calls for it. But to be friendly with filth like that will be exceptionally hard.'

Stripping off his clothes, he mad his way into the shower. He closed his eyes revelling in the feel of the warm water against his skin.

A strangled groan escaped his throat which he quickly regretted as he heard soft footsteps enter the room. A soft tap on the door, followed by a quiet voice greeted him from the doorway.

"Mr. Malfoy?"

He rolled his eyes. She couldn't let him a moments peace in the shower. He spoke softly, clenching his teeth together with all the courtesy he could muster. "Yes?"

"I heard you -" She paused. "Are you alright?" She voiced concern. When he didn't answer for a few moments, she continued. "I brought you a change of clothes. Seeing as you cannot continue to wear the same robes day in and out. Really are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm fine Miss Granger." He lied, his voice quavering. He had to lean back to close his eyes tightly to prevent himself from being sick. 'Oh the voices.' Pooling at his feet, diluted now with the hot water from his shower, all Lucius could see was the blood. So much blood.

Hermione waited that night until she was sure he was asleep to enter his room. He was quite a handsome man, but possessed quite a vicious tongue as well.

He was wearing the pants she had supplied, but not the shirt, his chest still bloody and scarred. The open wounds would heal, but he would be left with terrible scars.

Setting down the bottle of pain reliever by his bedside, Hermine took the bandages and the bottle of peroxide out of her pocket and began to cleanse the wounds. When she had finished she took some ointment and gauze and began to slowly wrap the material around his firm, thin abdomen muscles. She stepped back, clicking on the small bedside lamp to see whether she had missed anything. When she was satisfied that nothing that needed to be dressed was exposed, she stood back to admire her handy work. If her education had been of muggle stature she would have probably considered being a doctor. Maybe when she got back to Hogwarts, she would ask Madame Pomfrey to teach her something in the art of healing.

She jumped back when he groaned in his sleep, obviously remembering something very unpleasant. She finally had a chance after so long. For a moment she hesitated weighing the consequences of her actions were he to find out what she had been doing.

When she finally got the shake in her hand controlled, she gently placed her palm down on his forehead and closed her eyes.

_A much younger Lucius stood before her, hair shorter and unkempt, grey eyes cold, the contemplative look on his face telling her that he was waiting for something. _

_As if on queue the door burst open to reveal a man with identical grey eyes and blond hair. She could see the anger radiating off him even before he spoke. _

"_You will do as I say Lucius. I didn't raise you all these years to have you disobey me in any way." His voice, though calm held a hint of hysteria. _

_Lucius sneered. "Do you honestly believe that I listen everything you say old man? " _

_The older Malfoy's face contorted itself into a further look anger before he slapped Lucius with all the strength he could muster. . _

"_You will not address my like that boy! For 19 years I have put a roof over your head and you repay me by speaking to me as such! You will do as I say! You will marry her Lucius. Trust my words son, I brought you into this world, and I can take you out of it." His last words were commanding, spoken icily, before he made his exit, black robes billowing elegantly behind him. _

_A dumbfounded Lucius slipped to the floor holding his cheek. _

_Lucius stood in the middle of a great hall, his light blond hair contrasting with his dark grey robes. The only light came from the window above in the cathedral ceilings. A few moments later the echo of heels was heard on the cold stone floor. Only when she approached him did the sound quiet down. _

_She stood in front of him head lowered, eyes closed, light blond hair glowing eerily in the moonlight. He drew in a sharp breath, awed by her beauty. _

_When he finally broke the silence, his hoarse voice was a whisper. "Look at me Narcissa."_

_She slowly lifted her head and he found himself looking into the identical grey depths of her eyes. He felt a pang of guilt as a stray tear made it's way down her cheek. "Lucius?"_

_He lifted a shaking hand slowly and touched her cheek gently wiping away the tear. "You understand that there is no way out of this situation. We will have to do this no matter what. If my father wills it…" _

"_There is no way out." She completed his sentence, her voice finally breaking down. He pulled her closer to him and stroked her hair letting her purge out the events of the week._

_She wore a gown of the lightest blue. The blood red flowers that had been placed strategically around the hall contrasted with her appearance, giving her a look of the dead. He turned to look into her eyes, which had been darting nervously around the room, a look of fright in the depths. He could almost pity her. _

_Almost. _

_But those around him had become brothers. He watched though, with disgust, over those who stared at her deeply. _

_Hungrily. _

_During the ceremony she had clasped his hand so hard, that her long nails had left marks on the inside of his palm. Not that he could blame her. The voice of the wizard commanding the ceremony broke through his thoughts. _

"_Will you Narcissa share Lucius's pain, his joy, and his burdens and weight them upon your shoulders as your own?"_

_She closed her eyes, a tear falling down her cheek. "Yes."_

"_Will you Lucius, in return protect her from any ill that may befall her? " _

_Another tear. _

"_Yes."_

"_Then Lucius, I pronounce you husband and wife. May your marriage be long and ever lasting." _

_The silent tears, so controlled until now finally made their way down her cheeks one after another. He squeezed her hand gently, ignoring the look of helplessness on her face._


End file.
